Sorting stamp



May 24, 1955 w. A. STAHL SORTING STAMP Filed oct. 10, 1952 l INVENToR.

WALTER -.S`1AHL BY ATTO Q N EYS United States Patent O SDRTING STAMP `Walter Stahl, Cleveland, Ollio Application October 10, 1952A, Serial No. 314,067

l 2 claims. A(ci. 209-3) This invention relates `to a sorting stamp, and more particularly, has reference to an article which can be attached to an object to be sorted, in the manner of a stamp or tab, the sorting stamp constituting the presentrinvention being adapted, in this connection, as a sorting aid to be used in conjunction with any of various electrically-operated sorting or classifying devices.

It is well appreciated that there is, in many businesses,

a continuing need for a sorting or classifying means, which will permit the sorting or classication of a large quantity of generally similar objects, such as letters, bills, and the like. In many instances, the nature of the objects them selves resists efforts to prepare the objects for mechanical or electrical sorting, and as a result, said objects must be sorted'or classified manually, with an attendant loss of time and increase in expense.

Letters handled by the various post oflices fall Within this category, it being apparent that a letter envelope is of such a nature as to preclude its being handled by electrical sorting apparatus. Due to this characteristic of letters sent through the mails, the envelopes handled by the Post Oiiice Department must be manually sorted, so far as their destinations are concerned.

In View of the above, the broad object of the present invention is to provide an electrical sorting aid which can be attached directly, in the manner of a stamp, to each of a number of articles to be sorted, thus to permit said articles to be processed through electrical sorting devices, thereby to facilitate the handling of said articles and accomplish speedier routing thereof concurrently with a substantial reduction in the handling cost.

Another object of importance is to provide a device of the type stated which can be applied to any of various objects, such as envelopes, containers, and various solid, hollow, or unusually shaped objects.

Another object of importance is to provide a stamplike sorting aid of the type referred to above which, though capable of manufacture in a single form, will still be adapted to assume different shapes when applied to selected, correspondingly shaped objects, the sorting aid forming the present invention being flexible in construc tion to impart this characteristic thereto.

Yet another object is to provide a sorting aid of the type stated which, though usuable with electrical sorting or or classifying apparatus, can still be manufactured at a very low cost.

Still another object is to provide a sorting aid as stated which can be applied to an object to be sorted swiftly and easily.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claims appended thereto, and from the annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a conventional envelope with the sorting stamp constituting the present invention applied thereto;

Figure 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary perspective view 2,709,001 Patented May 2,4, 1955 showing the cover strip of the stamp partially removed, to illustrate the details of construction'of the stamp; and Figure 3 is a somewhat diagrammatic View illustrating the ilse o f the stamp in association with an electrical 4sorting device.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the reference numeral 10 has been applied generally to an object to be sorted. 'in the illustrated example of the invention, said object is an envelope, having the usual post office stamp `12. However, at this point, it is ,to be understood that the invention can be applied to any object to be sorted, the envelope being merely one example of an objectl on ,which the sorting stamp can be used. Said object could, for example, be a flexible or inexible container of any size or shape. Alternatively, the object to be sorted could be small or large, Solid, or hollow. lt is mainly important that the object have an exposed area suicient to receive the sorting stamp constituting the ypresent lin',- vcntion.

in accordance with the present invention, adhesive 14 is 4applied to the back of a cover strip 16. The cover strip 1.6, in the illustrated example of the invention, is of right-angled formation. However, the strip 'can be formed simply as a straight strip, the right angled formation illustrated being shown merely to illustrate an adaptation of the invention to ordinary envelope.

' The ,cover strip 16 is of flexible formation, and as noted above', has its back coated with adhesive. The strip 16, additionally, is of a non-electrically-conductive material, fora purpose to be made apparent hereinafter. A' rProvided'upon the strip 16, at intervals spaced longitudinally thereof, vare .score markings 18, said mar-kings defining betweenthem removable portions, each 4of which has a predetermined classification indicium. In the illustrated example of the invention, the indicia are the names of the several States. This particular group of indicia Would be used when the sorting stamp is applied to envelopes, for the purpose of allowing said envelopes to be electrically sorted while being processed by the Post Office Department to their proper destinations. In other words, the sender of the letter would remove the portion of the cover strip bearing the name of the State to which the letter is to go.

The cover strip 16 overlies an inner strip 20, said inner strip being free of score markings, and being coextensive in length with the cover strip. The inner strip 20 preferably is substantially narrower than the cover strip, as best shown in Figure 2, so as to prevent any portion of the inner strip from being accidently exposed.

Additionally, it is important to note that the inner strip 20 is of an electrically conductive material.

In use of the invention, the sorting stamp comprising the cover and inner strips is applied to the object to be sorted, Thereafter, a portion of the cover strip is removed, depending upon the classification to be assigned said object. ln Figure l, the portion marked Alabama has been removed, since the letter on which the stamp is used is to go to a destination in Alabama. The removal of a selected portion of the cover strip would be effected, of course, by the sender of the letter.

When the letter is received in the Post Oice Department, and is to be sorted as to its destination, it can be processed by any suitable electrical apparatus having bridgable contacts 22. Thus, I have illustrated schematically a typical electrical sorting device which might be used. In the schematic representation shown in Figure 3, the contacts 22 are provided at the ends of leads 24, said leads being in circuit with a suitable source of electrical power.

In the circuit there is included a solenoid 26, having a cord 28, to which is secured a baftle 30 pivoted at 32. The battle 30 can be left in the full line position when the contacts 22. are not bridged. When, however, the contacts 22 are bridged and a circuit is closed through the solenoid, said solenoid will be energized, causing the cord 28 to be urged outwardly, thereby to shift the object deector or battle to the dotted line position.

When the deflector moves to the dotted line position, it will be in the path of the object 10 to be sorted, thereby causing said object to be removed from other objects being processed therewith.

Thus, the exposed portion of the inner strip will serve to bridge the contacts 22, the particular location of the bridging means being adapted to cause the object 10 to be electrically sorted or classied.

The main characteristic of the invention, of course,

'resides in its formation as an inexpensive stamp having an electrically conductive means associated therewith, which stamp can be attached to any of various objects that would ordinarily resist electrical sorting or classification.

It is also thought to be an important characteristic of the invention that it can be applied to the selected object with substantial speed, the stamp being so formed as to permit removal of any selected portion therefrom, thus to aid in the subsequent sorting or classification process.

It is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specic use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited tothe specic construction illustrated and described, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles of operation and the 'means presently devised to carry out said principles, it

being considered that the invention comprehends any minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. An electrical sorting and classifying aid comprising, a cover strip of non-electrically-conductive material having adhesive on one face thereof forattachment to an object to be sorted, an inner strip of electrically-conductive material underlying said cover strip, and score markings extending transversely of said cover strip to define a plurality of selectively removable tabs, one of said tabs when selectively removed exposing said inner strip at the location of tab removal, said exposed portion of said inner strip defining a bridge for the spaced contacts of an associated electrical sorting device.

2. An electrical sorting and classifying aid comprising, a cover strip of non-electrically-conductive material having adhesive on one face thereof for attachment to an object to be sorted, an inner strip of electrically-conductive material underlying said cover strip, said electricallyconductive strip being of lesser width than said cover strip, and score markings extending transversely of said cover strip to dene a plurality of selectively removable tabs, one of said tabs when selectively removed exposing said inner strip at the location of tab removal, said exposed portion of said inner strip deiining a bridge for the spaced contacts of an associated electrical sorting device.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS l.217,092 Hopp Feb. 20, 1917 2,244,231 Armbruster June 3, 1941 2,502,785 Gottschalk Apr. 4, 1950 2,547,838 Russell Apr. 3, 1951 2,609,928 Doust Sept. 9, 1952 

